Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Swiss 5 Francs
Large .900 silver Swiss crown of 1888–1916, showing a Helvetia head on one face and the Swiss cross shield within a wreath on the other.
World
2 Lire
Silver 2 Lire of the Papal States struck under Pope Pius IX, part of the Italian lira system adopted by Rome in the 1860s.
Modern
20 Kronor
Gold 20 kronor of Sweden showing the crowned national arms with three coronets, reverse marked 20 KR and dated 1925.
World
4 Escudos
Spanish Bourbon gold 4 Escudos of the 1780s, with an armored royal bust facing right and a crowned coat of arms on the reverse.
Early Modern
Qajar 5 Tomans Commemorative
A late Qajar gold 5 Tomans of Persia showing Ahmad Shah Qajar in a laurel wreath and the national Lion emblem, dated 1299.
Persia / Iran
Draped Bust Dollar
Early U.S. silver dollar struck 1795–1804, with a draped bust of Liberty and, from 1798, a heraldic eagle reverse.
Dollar
Gustav I Silver Coin
Early-Renaissance Swedish silver of Gustav I Vasa (r. 1523–1560), pairing a crowned armored royal bust with a crowned heraldic lion.
Medieval
20 Reales (Isabel II)
Crown-sized Spanish silver 20 Reales of Queen Isabel II, with her crowned right-facing profile and a crowned pillared shield, dated 1854.
Modern
German 5 Reichsmark (Hindenburg)
German silver 5 Reichsmark of the Third Reich, pairing a portrait of Paul von Hindenburg with an eagle-and-swastika reverse; dated 1936.
Circulation
Double Louis d'Or
A large gold coin of Louis XIV dated 1701: the king's laureate profile and 'LUDOVICUS MAGNUS' obverse, an ornate cross of arms reverse.
Royal
Philip and Mary Shilling
Hammered silver shilling of Philip II of Spain and Mary I (1554-1558), showing their paired royal busts and a crowned quartered shield of arms.
Hammered
Dutch East Indies Duit
Small copper duit of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), showing the interlaced VOC monogram and a crowned provincial coat of arms, dated 1735.
Southeast Asia
Edward VI Half Groat
Small hammered silver twopence of Edward VI (1547-1553), with a left-facing royal profile and a cross-and-shield reverse.
Hammered
Xuantong Yuanbao 7 Mace 2 Candareens
A late Qing silver dollar-size coin of the Xuantong era (1909-1911), reading 宣統元寶 on the obverse with a Chinese dragon on the reverse.
Circulation
Artuqid Bronze Dirham
A 12th-century bronze coin of the Artuqid Turkmen dynasty, struck with Arabic inscriptions inside ornamental borders across eastern Anatolia.
Medieval Islamic
Athenian Owl Tetradrachm
Broad silver 'New Style' tetradrachm of Athens (c. 165-42 BC): helmeted Athena on the front, owl on an amphora within an olive wreath on the back.
Ancient Coins
2 Kronor
Silver 2 kronor of Sweden showing King Gustaf V in left profile and the crowned national arms, this piece dated 1922.
World
Halve Duit (VOC)
Small copper half-duit of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), bearing the crowned VOC monogram, struck in the 1700s for use in the Dutch trading world.
Early Modern
20 Lire
Silver-colored Italian 20 Lire piece of the Fascist era, showing a Mussolini profile and a horse-drawn chariot, dated 1936.
Modern
5 Francs (First Republic)
A large silver 5-franc crown of the French First Republic, dated by the revolutionary calendar as L'an 9 (1800–1801), with a right-facing Liberty head.
Circulation
Trinidad and Tobago 50 Cents
A large copper-nickel Caribbean circulation coin; the 1967 example carries the national coat of arms and country name on the obverse and the 50-cent value on the reverse.
Circulation
New Zealand Threepence
New Zealand's small silver threepence; this 1933 example carries the crowned bust of King George V with GEORGIVS V and his royal titles.
New Zealand
Gold Sovereign
The British gold sovereign: a one-pound gold coin. This 1817 George III example shows a laureate bust and a crowned heraldic shield of the royal arms.
World
British Brass Threepence
Chunky twelve-sided nickel-brass threepence of George VI, showing his head and a thrift plant reverse; the example shown is dated 1942.
British Isles